In a high-profile case, Yuga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection, is currently seeking nearly $400,000 in cryptocurrency from Jeremy Cahen, aka Pauly0x. This move is the latest in a long-running legal showdown. This move follows October’s partial victory for Yuga Labs in Hype v. Yuga Labs. They were successful in their trademark infringement lawsuit against Cahen and artist Ryder Ripps. On top of all that, Cahen is a greatly despised figure in the crypto world. He’s under fire for rolling out some industry-coddling projects and now Yuga Labs is attempting to snatch his JPEGs.
Background of the Lawsuit
That legal battle first flared up in July 2022. In response, the creators behind Bored Ape NFTs, Yuga Labs, filed a federal lawsuit against Cahen and Ryder Ripps, alleging trademark infringement related to Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs. In the ruling from October 2023, the court ruled in favor of Yuga Labs and against Ryder Ripps, awarding Yuga Labs damages over $1.5 million. This ruling confirmed that, in fact, Cahen and Ripps infringed Yuga Labs’ trademarks.
Cahen has subsequently appealed the decision, but Yuga Labs has begun asset recovery proceedings to satisfy the judgment. The targeting of Cahen’s crypto stash is the most recent turn in this highly debated case. Yuga Labs has filed the enforcement actions necessary to enforce the courts’ decisions and recover the damages they were awarded.
Cahen's Contentious Crypto Projects
Apart from the trademark flap, Jeremy Cahen has made headlines from his role in multiple dicey crypto enterprises. Tokenomics aside, he rushed to develop and release Pond0x—and almost instantly caught backlash, including allegations that it was a scam. Cahen is the founder of now-defunct Pork Coin, which was accused of doing the same.
Pond0x received a ton of criticism, and Cahen went to bat for it. Instead of pitching the project as a typical investment opportunity, he framed it as a “social experiment. Try as he might to explain things away though, these projects have added to his controversial reputation among the cryptocurrency community. Critics charge that he is either designing projects so badly that they are put at risk or deliberately profiting on the backs of retail investors.
Legal Troubles and Current Status
Jeremy Cahen’s legal woes are getting worse. He now finds himself on San Juan’s “Most Wanted” list for aggravated assault, with a bail of $75,000. Local law enforcement officials believe that he is armed and extremely dangerous. This new, shocking revelation only adds to the dark and contentious backstory about Dunn-Cahen and his still-raging legal war against Cahen.
Cahen has been calling himself “the most censored man on X” after getting hit by an account suspension of his own last year. He claims that he does not have to respond to discovery requests as long as his appeal remains pending. This position further complicates the asset recovery crackdown Yuga Labs is conducting. While the legal drama continues, Yuga Labs’s quest to actually collect the damages awarded them, and the NFT space will be watching closely.
